Post of the Day
The hidden costs of hydro: We need to reconsider world’s dam plans
With 3,700 dams in the planning stages worldwide, it is time for governments and builders to consider the true socio-environmental cost of hydroelectric dams before building them: study.
Today’s Celebration
Peace Corps Day – United States of America
Teachers Day – Albania
Transport and Telecommunication Workers Day – Turkmenistan
Feast Day of Perpetua and Felicitas – Christianity
Climate Change
Climate change will expose half of world’s population to disease-spreading mosquitoes by 2050
Scientists and public health officials have documented an increasing number of outbreaks of mosquito-borne illnesses across the globe in recent years, including yellow fever, dengue, chikungunya, and Zika.
Obama warns climate change will make global politics more toxic
Former President Obama on Tuesday dismissed climate change skeptics and warned that the world’s inability to effectively tackle the issue will toxify global politics.
Juliana v. United States: support for teens’ climate change lawsuit rising
The U.S. Constitution protects the right to a safe climate, say 30,000 kids and eight members of Congress in support of the suit.
A three-point checklist to help you tell fact from fiction in climate coverage
Jonathan Prendrgast and Nicky Ison
Australians shouldn’t need advanced degrees in climate and energy science to make informed decisions on the issues that will affect virtually every aspect of their lives.
Rising seas allow coastal wetlands to store more carbon
Kerrylee Rogers et al
Carbon storage in Australian mangroves can help mitigate climate change.
National
Desperately seeking PPAs: 7GW of solar, wind queue up for corporate deals
An independent online platform designed to connect corporate energy buyers with renewable energy developers has attracted more than 7,000MW of large scale wind and solar projects hungry to snare contracts to underpin the next phase of Australia’s energy transition.
Energy Insiders Podcast: Coalition’s fake news on climate and energy.
Climate Council’s Greg Bourne on why scientists and researchers are so outraged by Coalition givernment’s fake claims on emissions.
Revealed: Glencore bankrolled covert campaign to prop up coal
The mining company engaged Sir Lynton Crosby’s firm to push anti-renewables message and counter anti-coal activists
Gas industry open to intervention but warns against ‘dramatic’ action
Gas industry heads have acknowledged the need for some intervention to arrest high gas prices but warn dramatic action by governments would harm investment in new supplies that are needed to lower prices.
Wildlife havens save 13 Australian mammal species
Cats and foxes have hunted them to the brink of extinction.
No ban, but coal still faces delays [$]
Australian coal is still taking longer than normal to be cleared at Chinese ports, Trade Minister Simon Birmingham says.
‘Whole thing is unraveling’: climate change reshaping Australia’s forests
Graham Readfearn
Droughts, heat waves, bushfires and rising temperatures are driving ecosystems towards collapse
Coal is part of the solution in transition to new energy sources
Graham Young
The cowardice of Australia’s largest coal miner Glencore in bowing to activist pressure and capping its coal production torches the reputation of coal by implying coal mining is unethical.
Time to clean up our climate act – KonMari style
Petra Stock
Does it spark joy? Japanese Queen of Clean Marie Kondo could teach the federal government a thing or two about building an effective – and vote-winning – climate policy.
Five gifs that explain how pumped hydro actually works
Roger Dargaville The pumped hydro expansion in the Snowy Mountains is expected to be the largest renewable energy project in Australia.
Victoria
Victoria leads again as rooftop solar installations set another monthly record
Victoria has retained its spot as the biggest market for rooftop solar in February, as the country-wide installation of rooftop solar set another monthly record in February.
Vic fire threat eases in cooler conditions
The fire fight continues across eastern Victoria but cooler conditions, including snow, are offering hope.
With less than 200 individuals remaining in the wild, Zoos Victoria is trying to save the critically-endangered helmeted honeyeater.
Forget reality TV, species’ survival at stake in this matchmaking show
A captive breeding program stands between Victoria’s only endemic bird and extinction. But getting the helmeted honeyeater to find love at first sight is a tricky business.
Recycling crisis set for parliamentary inquiry
The disastrous state of Victoria’s recycling system will be the subject of a parliamentary inquiry that will propose solutions to the mounting problem.
Dry weather forces Government to make largest-ever order for desalinated water
More than 50 gigalitres of desalinated water is being ordered by the Victorian Government as water storages continue to drop in dry conditions which are expected to continue through autumn.
CityLink motorists face ten year price hike
CityLink motorists could be slugged with a giant hike of 4.25 per cent a year for the next decade to help pay for the West Gate Tunnel. Here’s what the new laws mean for your daily commute.
New South Wales
New coal-fired plant in NSW’s Hunter Valley could reignite the climate wars
The Greens say a “veritable army” is ready to thwart plans for a new Chinese-backed, coal-fired power plant in New South Wales, while the Coalition says it’s “exactly what the market needs”.
Liberals promise a billion dollars to Princes Highway if re-elected
The NSW Premier announces the Liberal Party will spend almost a billion dollars upgrading the Princes Highway if they are re-elected later this month.
Wild horses pose a ‘high’ risk to Kosciuszko campers
A spate of dangerous interactions between tourists and feral horses in Kosciuszko National Park has prompted the NSW Government to consider closing a popular camping ground.
Koalas and climate to the fore as environment looms large in NSW election
Labor is promising to reverse the Berejiklian government’s record on renewables, land clearing and Murray-Darling management
‘Elevated concentrations of methane’ in Sydney Park
One of the largest recreational areas in Sydney has been declared to be “significantly contaminated land”.
Hong Kong firm lobs bid to build NSW coal-fired power plant
An obscure Hong Kong-listed company claims to have sealed early plans to develop a low-emissions coal-fired power station in the Hunter valley – although NSW Planning is yet to receive any formal approach.
Independents push coal, climate [$]
Andrew Clennell
NSW is headed Left on renewable energy and policy around coal-fired power stations if a minority government is formed.
ACT
Commonwealth backs State Circle route for light rail stage two
The position makes it increasingly likely the ACT will take the path of least resistance and drop their proposed route through the Parliamentary Triangle.
Water surcharge worth $30 million a year not spent on water projects
The ACT Environment Commissioner’s office warned as long as the money just went into consolidated revenue, there’d be no record of how it was spent.
Queensland
Queensland Nationals demand action on energy before federal election
Six MPs fire internal warning shot with call for new power station construction and ‘big stick’
Too hot to handle: Sunshine State residents shun walking due to heat
Carless Brisbane CBD streets, bubblers and more pedestrian bridges across the River are among ideas to get Brisbane people hitting the footpath.
South Australia
Solar helping to power business as rural land prices rise [$]
Almost 300 Port Pirie residents will soon be generating power on their rooftops, as part of a bulk-buy solar scheme instigated by the local council. Meanwhile, farm land prices on the Yorke Peninsula have risen 20 per cent in the past five years.
Council hit with $232k bill to get rid of recycling [$]
The recycling crisis is starting to hit the hip pockets of ratepayers, with one council revealing a huge bill to process recycling — for which they used to get
Tasmania
This is the third suspected penguin kill in 12 months — now residents call for action
This is the third time in 12 months the owner of Low Head Penguin Tours in northern Tasmania has dealt with the consequences of a suspected attack on penguins.
City of Launceston councillor Andrea Dawkins said she plans to put forward a motion to discuss banning single-use plastics at events sponsored by council or on council land.
Ta Ann mill staff plead for answers
Employees of Ta Ann’s fire-affected Southwood mill have called for certainty as the company’s Tasmanian directors work to convince overseas shareholders the site has a viable future.
Northern Territory
NT mine operator rejects $24.8bn takeover bid [$]
The operator of the Tanami gold mine in the NT’s Centralian desert, Newmont Mining, has rejected a $24.8 billion takeover bid by Canadian mining giant Barrick Gold
Western Australia
Opposition calls for government to come clean on airport link ‘toxic’ soil problem
The opposition is calling on Rita Saffioti to come clean over the extent of contamination in soil unearthed by tunnelling work on the Forrestfield Airport Link project.
Time to put brakes on ‘dumb density’ in Perth
We’ve all heard about the NIMBYs, those who claim to support increased density, just Not In My BackYard. The latest is a corker — the BANANAs want to Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anyone.
Bullsbrook blaze brought under control
Firefighters have battled for two nights to contain and control a bushfire in Perth’s north-east that is no longer posing a threat to lives and homes, with milder weather helping their efforts.
Sustainability
Tesla slashes Model S and X prices with new standard range
Tesla’s premium electric car range expands and drops price, with a new Standard Range option for the Model S added to Australian configurator.
Sono reveals first design of solar EV – Sion
Sono Motors’ first production solar car is no longer just on drawing board – and it’s bigger, longer and roomier.
World’s most polluted cities ranked in report
A Greenpeace report has ranked the world’s most polluted cities.
22 of world’s 30 most polluted cities are in India
Twenty-two of the world’s 30 worst cities for air pollution are in India, according to a new report, with Delhi again ranked the world’s most polluted capital.
The best and worst airlines at fighting climate change
A report has found EasyJet is the best airline at cutting its carbon emissions, but all carriers could do more.
Rapid recharge will go a long way [$]
Charging an electric vehicle battery in less than 10 minutes could be a reality by year’s end.
Investors call on HSBC to restrict financing of coal in Bangladesh, Vietnam and Indonesia [$]
A group of HSBC Holdings shareholders representing $1 trillion in assets either under management or stewardship have called on HSBC Bank to stop financing coal power projects in Bangladesh, Vietnam and Indonesia.
High court rules UK government’s fracking guidelines ‘unlawful’
Court finds government failed to consider scientific evidence against fracking
The hidden costs of hydro: We need to reconsider world’s dam plans
With 3,700 dams in the planning stages worldwide, it is time for governments and builders to consider the true socio-environmental cost of hydroelectric dams before building them: study.
Nature Conservation
The Peruvian government has opened the first of four military bases in the southeastern Amazon to combat illegal mining, which has deforested tropical forests and contaminated waters with mercury.
Endangered species face ‘disaster’ under Trump administration
Trump’s push to expand oil and gas drilling is eroding protections for some of America’s most at-risk wildlife
Climate change forces Arctic animals to shift feeding habits
Seals and whales in the Arctic are shifting their feeding patterns as climate change alters their habitats, and the way they do so may determine whether they survive, a new study has found.
Some corals becoming resilient to rising temperatures
New research offers a “glimmer of hope” that at least some species of coral are acclimatising to rising ocean temperatures.
Now for something completely different …
Why the ‘perfect’ office temperature is a myth
Fan Zhang et al
Workplaces the world over tune their thermostats to 22C, because this supposedly optimises mental performance. But the factors that underpin a productive office are much more complicated.
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